recital

[ ri-sahyt-l ]

noun

1. a musical entertainment given usually by a single performer or by a performer and one or more accompanists.
2. a similar entertainment in a field other than music:

   a dance recital.

3. a program or concert by dance or music students to demonstrate their achievements or progress.
4. an act or instance of reciting.
5. a formal or public delivery of something memorized.
6. a detailed statement.
7. an account, narrative, or description:

   He gave a recital of the things he'd been doing since we'd last seen him.

recital

/ rɪˈsaɪtəl /

noun

1. a musical performance by a soloist or soloists Compare concert
2. the act of reciting or repeating something learned or prepared
3. an account, narration, or description
4. a detailed statement of facts, figures, etc
5. often plural law the preliminary statement in a deed showing the reason for its existence and leading up to and explaining the operative part

Derived Forms

• reˈcitalist, noun

Other Words From

• re·cital·ist noun
• nonre·cital noun adjective
• prere·cital noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of recital¹

First recorded in 1505–15; recite + -al ²

Synonym Study

See narrative.

Example Sentences

And by those lights, the Dada of a dance recital in lieu of a town hall makes perfect sense.

From Slate

Each came through town recently with a highly personal and revealing recital program of intense intimacy and theatrical originality, boldly proclaiming a new generation’s profound rebirth of the medium.

From Los Angeles Times

Bullock’s first recital recording, “Walking in the Dark,” released on Nonesuch late in 2022, stunned the vocal world with its passion and won a Grammy.

From Los Angeles Times

Tines now has his first Nonesuch recital recording, “Robeson,” just out, another Nonesuch knockout and obvious Grammy contender.

From Los Angeles Times

Among those was 10-year-old Ruby, a second-language Welsh learner whose enthusiastic celebrations after winning a recital category at the cultural event went viral earlier this year.

From BBC

Related Words

• concert
• musical
• presentation
• reading
• recitation
• rehearsal